Prior art chin rests for violins, violas, or the like, come in many different shapes and sizes. However, all prior art chin rests are constructed to provide uniform positioning of a user's chin in relation to the position of the musical instrument. In accordance with the prior art chin rests, a resting place is constructed to clamp directly over the instrument itself, thereby making the effective length of the instrument fixed. With the instrument length unchangeable, the performer is forced to make adjustments with his upper and lower arm, as well as wrist, in order to maintain a desired relationship to the instrument.
Invariably, for taller users, this adjustment includes a contraction in the arm, which contraction can cause difficulty in playing. Furthermore, the contraction can lead to injuries of the back, neck, and joints of the user. Commonly, tendonitis, muscle compression, and carpal tunnel syndrome result from extensive playing of the violin in the contracted position. As a result, users for whom the contracted position affects playing ability and/or leads to severe injury may be required to change instruments.
In addition to the foregoing, the inability of the prior art chin rest to adjust for variation in the arm length of users, thus requiring the above-noted contracted playing position, can lead to further complications. As an example, the user is typically forced to make compensation in the playing position of the right arm, which is usually used to hold the bow that strokes the violin strings, so that the orientation between the bow and the violin string can be in the accepted perpendicular relationship. The user can also be forced to make compensations in the positioning of the left hand, as a result of the contracted playing position, which compensations can lead to restriction of free movement, inability to play in tune, and inability to play with significant of bravado.
Still further, the conventional placement of the chin rest over the violin can be undesirable even for users having conventional arm sizes. Since the conventional chin rest relies upon the shoulder supporting the violin, a dampening contact is created that prevents free vibration and is undesired for a singing tone. Similar dampening can be caused by the jaw, in opposition to the shoulder.
Accordingly, it is desirable to construct a chin rest that is capable of being positioned at various locations with respect to the musical instrument.